K-pop star Jennie in a "blokecore" look / Captured from Jennie's Instagram

Sports kits are now a fashion item for millennials and Gen Zers, who use their sports teams to create a stylish "blokecore" look in their daily lives. This trend has been especially boosted by the recent start of baseball's KBO League and football's K League here, sparking increased interest in professional sports among people.

The blokecore look is a stylish fusion of sporty streetwear that mixes sports jerseys with jeans, sneakers, tracksuits and other items to create a laid-back or urban street style. Hashtags with keywords like blokecore and "uniformlook" on social media have been trending with thousands of posts.

To align with the fashion trend, local professional sports teams have unveiled new kits for the season, along with collaborations with fashion brands aimed at fans.

Pro-Specs, a Korean sports brand, extended its sponsorship contracts with major baseball team LG Twins and basketball team LG Sakers, releasing various products for the 2025 season, including kits and team gear.

NewJeans wears "blokecore" / Captured from NewJeans' Instagram

LG Twins also recently partnered with local design studio Bloomingtale, which is highly popular among Gen Z consumers.

The collaboration resulted in 12 different types of merchandise, including miniature cheering stick keyrings, black cat plush doll keyrings, kits and clothing with the team's mascot, logos and other accessories.

"This collaboration is designed to be worn not only at the stadium, but also in everyday life, and is expected to attract great interest from consumers," the team said.

Spyder, another sportswear brand that is popular in Korea and the official sponsor of the Hanwha Eagles for their official merchandise, unveiled new authentic kits for this season, available both online and in stores. It launched the Authentic Plus line, adding stylish elements to traditional kits and transforming them into everyday streetwear.

Kiwoom Heroes also opened a pop-up store at the Hyundai Department Store in Yangcheon District, Seoul, to celebrate the season's opening. The team showcased seven new uniforms at the pop-up store, including its collaboration with Nike for home and away kits that were renewed for the first time in six years. The pop-up store also introduced 25 types of team merchandise, attracting many fans.

LG Twin's collaboration merchandise with Bloomingtales. Captured from Bloomingtales' Instagram

KBO League's Samsung Lions collaborated with street fashion brand San San Gear to present new merchandise, including kits, hats, windbreakers and bags. The collaboration created enormous buzz, with all products, except for the bags, selling out immediately after the prerelease last month.

Convenience store chains are also riding the trend with new collaborations targeting younger consumers.

The retail company Korea Seven, which operates 7-Eleven, recently released merchandise for the European professional football teams Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City.

The products consist of six items in total — two types of socks, arm sleeves and underwear — each featuring the team's colors and emblems in the designs.

The products are sold at 7-Eleven Dundun and Newwave Origin stores in Dongdaemun and Gangdong districts, as well as on the company's app, 7App. Available items include T-shirts with each club's colors and emblems, gym bags, mufflers, messenger bags, ball caps and various fashion accessories. More than 18 types of souvenirs, including key rings, dolls and mugs, are also available online.

Models hold 7-Eleven's collaboration merchandise with European professional football teams Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City. Courtesy of Korea Seven

In celebration of the new collaboration, the company is having a promotional event until April 11, offering up to a 20 percent discount.

"While convenience store clothing items used to feel like disposable items to be worn temporarily in emergencies, now we're aiming to expand the category with highly usable and collectible items," Korea Seven said.

"Especially since convenience store clothing items are called ‘convenience store fashion' overseas and have become a style of their own, we plan to differentiate ourselves so they can establish themselves as a new fashion trend in Korea as well."